The invention relates generally to a multicolored, patterned floor covering and a method for its manufacture. The floor covering is of the type which typically has a thickness of 1 to 4 mm, and consists of a sheeting having a first color that contains an imbedded granulated material dyed to a second color that differs from the color of the sheeting. The granulated material is embedded in the sheeting in at least the upper side of the sheeting. Such a floor covering is disclosed in French patent FR-PS 11 67 760, which lists a number of thermoplastic, polymer materials usable for this purpose, with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) being preferred.
The French patent also describes a method for manufacturing such a floor covering, particularly from PVC, in which at least two differently colored fractions of raw material are converted into sheeting using two rollers having identical diameters turning inversely at the same speed. Concomitantly, granular materials are forced under pressure into a thermoplastic base material, which is then heated to at least the softening point of the base material and again pressed, so that the base material completely surrounds the particles.
One problem arising from the manufacture of such floor coverings is that the pieces of waste material such as border trimmings and production remnants that are produced by such methods are characterized by the respective colors that are utilized. Consequently, they are not reusable in the same production process, and are usable to only a limited extent for the production of other recycled products.
This invention is directed to the problem of providing a floor covering of this general type, and a method for its production, such that the pieces of waste material that are produced through the manufacture of the floor covering can be reused in the same process.